The Lord of the Elements
by Frodine
Summary: Lord of the Rings meets High School Chemistry
1. Prologue

Disclaimer: I don't own Lord of the Rings or any of the characters I mention. Unfortunately, I don't own the science of Chemistry either.

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Three vials for the Basen Kings under the sky;

Seven for the Bohr-lords in their halls of stone;

Nine for the Covalents, doomed to die;

One for the Dark Lord on his dark throne.

One Vial to rule them all;

One Vial to find them;

One Vial to bring them all;

And in dilution bind them.

Prologue

I, Galalandrium, intend to explain to members of the current world what happened during those previous ages that few remember. I took part in some of the events, and others I learned of firsthand. The following is the record of the events transpiring in Middle Earth from before its First Age to the War of the Vial.

In a time when few remember, a great, Dark, Evil Lord, Silicon, rebelled against our King over the waters. His appearance was that of a Base, so few recognized him for what he was. He was desperate for power. Day and night, the thought of it ravaged within him. He rebelled against the King in search of this power, of which he thought he deserved a part—a part far greater than that he had been given.

  
After many years of work, the vague idea of a plan came to him. Because the world, by that time, had disintegrated somewhat from its former glory, very few things completely pure were left. Those of us Great Ones that yet remembered the perfect, pure world of yesterday yearned for those things that might remind us of that time. Silicon knew of our thirst. To ensure our cooperation, he found and offered to us small Vials of what pure substances were yet left in the world. He knew we could not refuse them. Some he gave to nine great Covalents, who had not seen the perfect world, although the stories we told made them long for it. Three were given to my kind, the Bases, of which I was one. Then seven were given to the Bohr lords. This, no doubt, was the beginning of the feud between the Bases and the Bohrs—Many bases believed it unfair for the Bohrs to receive more than the immortal kind.

Although each of these three kinds were grateful for what bit of purity they could get, they were all of them deceived, for, in private, Silicon had kept back the greatest of all pure substances: Ammonium. This is the rarest and most powerful weapon in our world, and he kept for himself an entire sample of it in its purest form. While the holding of any of the other vials gave him who held it great power, strength, and rule, the Ammonium controlled each of the other samples, although in such a way as it was hard to detect. Fortunately, we Bases hid our samples when we realized what Silicon had done. We remained outside of his power. Many of the Bohr-Lords did the same. The Covalents, however, who have thirsted for control since the dawn of their day, kept their Vials. They became the Polys.

Even though many resented his rule, Silicon gloried and lavished in the power he had stole. Thinking himself a great creator, he built an army of Acids to neutralize us, the immortal Bases. He knew that unless we were rendered useless, he would never have complete victory. These were bred of rebellious Covalents, Bohrs, and a few untrue Bases. Few things equaled them in horror and evil.

In a last attempt to defeat Silicon, the Bases, Covalents, and Bohrs still standing against him joined together in a battle to end all battles, in the faint hope of destroying him and his Vial. The King of the Covalents approached Silicon in the battle and attempted to stab him, but was thrown aside by his great repulsion. The King's son came to his rescue, but found it was too late. The King was dead. The new King stood and, in his rage, gave Silicon a crushing blow. The Vial became the possession of Silicon's conqueror, the Prince, who became a King on the field of battle. Elronion encouraged him to dilute the Ammonium immediately. But, drawn by its power, he refused.

Because the Vial yet remained intact, Silicon's spirit did not die. He had put much of his power and life into the Vial, and as long as the Ammonium within it remained pure, he would live on and return someday to again wreak havoc on Middle Earth.

As the new king returned home, he dropped the Vial into a great, flowing river. In an attempt to save it, the Covalent king drowned, and the Vial was lost for a very long time.

History became legend, legend became myth, and nearly all memory of the Great Vial faded. Until, one day many years later, it was discovered again.

A young Mole, Sulferagol, found the Vial and became obsessed with it, calling it his "Precious." Eventually, he moved away to a cave in the Misty Mountains, where he could be alone with it. The vial gave him unnatural long life, and he grew distorted in the dark. It then came into the possession of a Mole named Barium who, at the time, was on a quest completely unrelated to the Vial. Even he fell under its spell, not revealing its presence to others for some time. After returning to his home, Barium kept the Vial hidden, although he looked at it often.

In the meantime, Silicon's new plot, since the temptation of the Vials did not decieve the Bases, was to dilute Middle Earth. In Morphine, he built a huge plant that brewed a special compound. When it was the proper time, he would release the special compound into the streams of Middle Earth. The mixture would cause the waters to rise up and turn all the banks for miles and miles around to sludge, rendering it useless. The only compound that could repair the sludge enough to be useful was, at the moment, only a secret formula in the hands of Silicon. Once the lands of Middle Earth were destroyed, the Bases would either leave, or come and beg of Silicon his formula for repairing it. Either way, Silicon would win dominion over Middle Earth.

As the great Alchemist Gadolinium discovered, however, the vial of Ammonium could stop Silicon's plan from the start. If dumped into the waters of the dilution plant in Morphine, the ammonium would destroy his carefully plotted dilution ratios, rendering his formula useless. In fact, watching his prized ammonium mix itself in with the solution, thereby becoming impure, would destroy Silicon once and for all.

These, then, are the more explanatory sections of the tale recorded elsewhere. The first describes the Great Alchemist, Gadolinium, as well as the young Mole, Frodine. Then, an explanation of the Polys. There is the story of the Great Council of the Vial. And then, the story of the bond between the Covalant Argon and the Base Arwiena. Listen to the story carefully, good reader, and learn what you may.


	2. Chapter One: Uncle Bary's Birthday

Disclaimer: See Prologue

Chapter 1: Uncle Bary's Birthday

"Gadolinium! Gadolinium! You _have_ come after all! My uncle was so worried you wouldn't."

"Frodine, you rascal! You don't think I would miss his birthday party, do you?"

"None of us really knew—most of the Moles aren't especially kind to alchemists, so we didn't know if you would care to come."

"Alchemists have few friends. Most people think they're crazy. The friends they have, are."

"Ha! No worries, though—my uncle and I will always be your friends. Perhaps the rest of the Moles aren't quite so friendly to you, but the Beryllium family will always appreciate you—even if you did destroy my uncle Bary's reputation. I'm afraid the Berylliums aren't quite so respected anymore."

"Ah, yes—Barium's adventure with the adventure with the Bohrs—now, now, I had very little to do with that, really. No matter—alchemists are used to having things blamed on them."

"Poor Gadolinium. Well, I still like you. Come on, I'll take you back to the Hole."

"Hop in—I'll take you."

Frodine jumped up into Gadolinium's wagon. The bond between them was strong; Frodine had known and loved Gadolinium since he was only a proton.

"Tell me all about what is happening in the rest of the world, Gadolinium."

"The Bases and Bohrs are getting along a little better on the surface now, but, if confronted, each will admit his repulsion with the other. Of everything else there is little to tell. No one really knows or cares about you Moles much—a fact for which I am very grateful!"


	3. Chapter Two: Explanation of the Polys, a...

Disclaimer: See Prologue

Chapter 2: The Inn of the Dancing Electron and the Polys

"Who are they, Argon?" asked Frodine fearfully.

"They are the Polys. Neither Covalent nor Ionic. Once, they were covalent—until Silicon got his hands on them. They were bearers of nine of the Great Vials. The power of the unpaired electrons in the metals drew them closer and closer, until they bonded. Now, they are Polyatomic. Their extra electrons have caused them to have heightened sensitivity to the presence of any other pure form of matter. They are hunting you and your vial now. All their senses are bent on us."

"Must we not leave here, now, then?"

"At present, our disguises make us appear like HM's—Homogenous Mixtures. They will not spot us for a while. Soon, however, Silicon may guess our plan. Then—very little can save us."


	4. Chapter Three: The Council of Elronian

Disclaimer: See Prologue

Chapter 3: The Council of Elronion

When Frodine finally woke up, Gadolinium was waiting for him. Frodine tried to sit up, but he had a stiffness in his chest that kept him down. He realized that not being able to sit up was quite an improvement over not waking up at all. It had taken all of the great Basen King Elronion's power to save Frodine's life. He had been stung by a radiation weapon of the Polys'. Frodine nearly died of its poison. That he was awake was a cause for great celebration and happiness in Rovendellum. Gadolinium explained carefully to Frodine where he was and what had happened to everyone. As Frodine began to understand what had taken place, the door to his room burst open. "Frodine! Mr. Frodine! You're awake!" Samarium ran towards Frodine's bed and knelt down next to it. "We were quite worried about you for a while there. I'm glad you're all right."

"I'm glad too, Sam. Now I wonder, though—what am I to do from here?" Gadolinium spoke next.

"Elronion wishes to hold a council with many great leaders of many great races. He wishes that you might represent the Moles in this great council. I will be there, representing the Alchemists. I'm sure you know what we will be discussing. Will you come?"

"Yes, Gadolinium, if you think I ought to."

Later that day, the great kings had assembled. Bromine, the favored son of the steward of the Covalents, was there. While the Bases and the Bohrs had Kings, the Covalents had stewards. It seemed that a long time ago, their king had ridden out into battle against Silicon in an age long past. He and his son were both killed, leaving the Covalents' land of Gandar without a King. The House of Stewards, whose job it was to rule the kingdom when the King was away, took control, but never actually claimed the title of King.

Many great Bases and Bohrs were there, along with Gadolinium, Bromine, and Frodine. The Great Basen King Elronion sat at the head of the council and asked for silence from the muttering group. "Good people of the Bohrs, Bases, and Covalents. I thank you for coming here today. As you know, the great Vial, the stronghold of Silicon, has been found. Frodine! Bring it forth!" Frodine arose, pulled the Vial out of his pocket, and placed it on a platform in the middle of the circle. He sat back down. Elronion spoke again. "This Vial must be taken to Morphine and destroyed. Many here would advocate using it rather than destroying it, but all of our ionization potentials are far too low to handle the power of the raw element contained inside. We could not handle it if we tried. Besides that, Silicon's current plan to enslave Middle Earth can be stopped through this Vial. A three-fold success will be reached should we succeed in bringing the Vial to the dilution plant in Morphine: one, the Vial itself, a container of temptation, will no longer endanger the inhabitants of Middle Earth. Two, it will stop Silicon's current plan to dilute Middle Earth. Three, it will actually destroy Silicon forever. Our only hope, then, if we wish to remain strong, is in its dilution. One of you must take it to the dilution plant in Morphine." Here, Bromine spoke up.

"One does not simply walk into Morphine. There are thousands of Acids roaming around the land in between here and Morphine. Its borders are guarded by thousands more. Not with ten thousand soldiers could this be done. And besides that, as everyone knows, all opposed to Silicon who enter the land of Morphine come under his spell of dullness and lack of feeling. In this state, it would be a simple thing for Silicon to recover his Vial, in which case he will be twice as strong as before."

Elronion spoke again. "I understand your fears. Yet, it must be done. Ten thousand would not accomplish the task; you are correct. That is why only one or very few should take it. And, as to your second objection, the drug of Morphine, as it is called, only controls those Silicon knows are approaching and wishes to disable. One person entering Morphine in secret might be able to evade Silicon's searching eye, thus evading the drug, and succeed in diluting the Ammonium." Here, a tall, comparatively young Base stood up and spoke.

"I will take it."

At this, several of the Bohrs became enraged. The feud between the Bases and the Bohrs was bitter. The leader of the Bohrs stood.

"I will die before I see the great Vial in the hands of a Base!" It seemed that an enormous fight was breaking out. Frodine did not like it when anyone was angry. Now, there were at least twenty beings (all much larger than him, I must say) yelling and fighting each other. Closing his eyes, he took a deep breath, trying to ignore the shouting. Suddenly, as though thrust forward by something superior in mind and will to him, he jumped up and shouted out in as loud a voice as his quaking heart could muster (which was really quite loud, considering his size).

"I will take it! I will take the Vial to Morphine!"

At this, everyone fell silent and stared at him. He spoke again. "I have borne its power for many miles now, and have suffered the sting of those who seek it. I do not long for the power it would give me. I am not tempted by its strength. I will take it to Morphine—though I do not know the way." Argon, the brave Covalent who had taken him to Rovendellium, regained his composure and spoke.

"Then I will accompany you, brave Frodine. You will have every bit of electricity I can share." A Base approached him as well.

"I do not have as much electricity as he does, but I will neutralize any acids we come into contact with for you." A Bohr followed.

"Bohrs cannot neutralize Acids quickly, and neither can we share electricity, but I can guide you to Morphine. We Bohrs never fear "unknown" paths, for our education consists mostly of studying all the ways of this land. I carry many models of Morphine and its surrounding lands in my head alone. I can guide you well." Bromine and Gadolinium also said they would accompany Frodine. Elronion smiled.

"You shall be the Fellowship of the Vial!" Everyone cheered. In the midst of the hubbub, Samarium, Moly, and Polo ran into the crowd.

"We're comin' too!" shouted Poly.

"Frodine ain't goin' nowhere without me!" cried Samarium.

Elronion spoke, not unkindly. "Very well. I see we cannot separate Frodine from his friends whatsoever, even when he alone is called to a secret council."

Moly spoke. "Sorry about that, Sir. We couldn't just be abandoning our friend though, could we? We had to know what was going on, so that we could help Frodine out. And we will! Now—where're we going again?"


	5. Chapter 4: Argon and Arwiena at Rovendel...

Disclaimer: See Prologue

Chapter 4: Arwiena & Argon in Rovendellium

"Do you remember when we first met, Argon?"

"I thought I had strayed into a dream."

"Do you remember what I told you then?"

"You said you would share your unpaired electrons with me, therefore forsaking the Basen life, becoming Covalent, like me."

"I meant it."

"I couldn't let you. You would find the end hard to bear."

"Yet easier than forever remaining unpaired."

"Find a Basen king. You can give your electrons to him, and be bonded together forever by your opposite charges. If you come with me, we will be forced to share. I don't have the ability to give mine up, like you do."

"Your electronegativity is far too high, yes—but just high enough to attract me. I will go with you, and we will live in bliss until the end."

"Only part of the time."

"What do you mean?"

"Because we must share, and because my electronegativity is so high, you will be in bliss far less than half the time. You would do well to find one of your own kind, who would make you truly happy, for always and forever. I can only promise to be with you a short time."

"Yet, we are a perfect match. I will come with you. I would rather be in bliss less than half the time with you than all the time with another of my kind. Let me come away with you. Nay, I will come, whether you want me to or not."

"When I declare my true name, fair princess, I will become purely Covalent. Then, perhaps, we might be happier than now, when I am only polar covalent. We would never be able to mix now. We must wait. I will let you come with me then when we might be happier, if your father allows it."

"Even he cannot fail to see your exceptionally high electronegativity. He knows you will not let me go to another."

"Yet he does not wish to lose you."

"I will come."

"I will love you forever, and will make you as happy as a Covalent possibly can."


End file.
